101 Day Bikram Yoga Challenge

That's 101 yoga classes in 101 days. 9,090 minutes in 26 postures, 2 breathing exercises, in a room heated to 105-110 degrees with raised humidity. That's a LOT of sweat! I completed a 30 day challenge in winter 2010 when I literally had nothing to do for a month before going to Argentina while my friends were beginning second semester at W&M. Granted, I was also doing a pretty intense south beach diet, but I lost about 12 pounds in a month and felt physically lean, tight, flexible and ready to conquer the southern hemisphere. It will definitely be a bit tougher fitting in daily practice with a full time job and volunteer work, but I'm determined. When I did the other challenge, I would literally base my entire day around what time I wanted to practice. I figured out exactly how hydrated I need to be and when/what I needed to eat, or I suffered the consequences of feeling nauseous or dizzy during class.

I think I will be happier in the short term if I start to base my day around yoga again as opposed to getting caught in the daily grind of adjusting to the "real world" of 40 hour work weeks fresh out of an undergraduate education. I know that I'm lucky to have landed a job where I get to use what I learned in school and make a difference in a few lives while crashing with the parents and saving $$ for the next adventure. I've always been motivated to succeed academically, and my social life and athletics fell into place. Now that I don't have the safeguard of being a student, I find myself asking myself a lot of important questions that I hadn't fully considered in the past.

I cannot think of a better place to contemplate life than my yoga mat. Oh wait, isn't that practically the opposite of meditation? Isn't the point to gain transient wisdom via detaching yourself from your thoughts?For me at least, sometimes my brain works best when I don't overanalyze and just do what feels right. All I know is that the best few minutes of my day is frequently my final savasana and walking out of the sweaty yoga room into the air conditioned lobby. That is something worth pursuing...for 101 days and beyond.

Today, Mon Oct 24th was DAY ONE. I asked my mom to take a few pictures of my postures after class today so I can compare for progress throughout the process. I hope that I'll drop a few pounds during the challenge, but that's definitely not the main goal. I want to renew my faith in myself to set and achieve goals. I want to gain some clarity about where I see my life going. I also want to lock my leg out in standing bow, wrap my foot around my calf in eagle, and get a lot more air during full locust pose :)